Racing Hearts Collide follows a MotoGP champion and an ambitious mechanical engineer as they navigate competition, heartbreak, and a second chance at love while discovering that life’s greatest victories aren’t won on the track. What did you like most about writing this book?

My favorite part of writing this book was creating a racing schedule and race results that led to rewatching dozens of MotoGP races as “research” to create a new season of racing that had the feel and excitement that I wanted. I used these as an outline to shape the story. I also loved creating the dynamics between Vince and Catarina because I wanted to imagine a happy ending for the real MotoGP rider who inspired the character of Vince.

Vince is a twelve-time world champion confronting the realities of aging in a demanding sport. How did you approach portraying his evolving identity and ambitions?

While my character is fictional, at his core, Vince was inspired by my long-time favorite MotoGP rider, Marc Marquez. I imagined a different future for him after an almost career-ending injury in 2020. I tried to get in his head and think what it would be like to have lived for your sport for almost your whole life but age and physical limitations mean an end is coming. If not now, then soon. He needed to start thinking about his future and what it would mean for his life. I wanted to think about what it would be like for that transition. Vince’s brother Isaac had a similar revelation in the previous book, Racing Towards Destiny. In both stories, the brothers evolve to learn that there is more to life than racing.

Catarina is determined to establish herself as a mechanical engineer in the male-dominated world of MotoGP. What inspired her character and professional journey?

There is exactly one woman in a powerful role in the current MotoGP paddock, the owner of the Gresini Racing team. When her husband, long time team owner and former rider died in 2021, she took on a leadership role. She has faced a level of scrutiny and prejudice that has nothing to do with her ability and the incredible success of the team since she took over. It’s been the top independent (non-factory) team since her takeover as team boss. The Marquez brothers raced for her in 2024 and she and her incredible team revived his career, giving Marc a stepping stone back to success. On her team, he earned a factory ride for the following year and a way back to the championship in 2025 (and potentially 2026 as he is the championship leader with 3 races remaining in the current season). Much of his recent success he credits to Gresini Racing and Nadia Padovani.

So, while there are a few women mechanics, they are underrepresented at all levels of MotoGP (riders, crew, management, and ownership). I wanted to bring another woman into this world who would face challenges related to that and meet them head on.

Vince and Catarina share a romantic history that complicates their renewed connection. How did their longstanding friendship shape the emotional development of their second-chance romance?

It meant they started with a level of comfort and respect that someone new to Vince’s world would not have known or understood. He is an elite athlete near the pinnacle of his long career. Many women wouldn’t have understood the challenges facing Vince and would have simply been frustrated by his intensity and purpose that always put racing first. Vince and Cat already had physical chemistry and friendship. 

In Racing Hearts Collide, at last they also have timing. 

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